Curren$y is an emcee lucky enough to experience a second childhood in hip-hop, as he first debuted as a No Limit solider ten years ago, as a member of the 504 Boyz. With the sheer amount of crap the label was shoveling out at that time, it was easy to overlook diamonds in the rough like him and collaborator-still, Fiend. Over the past few years, Curren$y has helped lead a new generation of post-DJ-Drama-mixtape-raid rappers, which also includes names like Wale, Big K.R.I.T., 2 Chainz, and Wiz Khalifa – all of whom have graduated the scene – and also whom each appear on his Warner Music debut, The Stoned Immaculate.
Curren$y’s style is an acquired taste. His laidback flow almost suggests he’s not standing in a studio when spitting his rhymes, but instead spitting from the couch with a mic in one hand, joint in the other. Like any well-lit stoner, Curren$y often makes astute, humorous observations about the world around him, while other times he rhymes about the finer things, such as “I’m Words With Friends whole time, in-flight wireless….”
Unlike Pilot Talk with Ski Beatz or Covert Coup with Alchemist, the production on The Stoned Immaculate is handled by a variety of producers. Despite this, the album does carry a pretty unified sound, even if not as tightly knit as it’s predecessors. Tracks like “Privacy Glass” and “Armoire” are weed rap at it’s finest, describing ambitions of a stoner with almost Raekwon-levels of extravagance.
Thankfully, Curren$y did not go the commercial route with The Stoned Immaculate. Sure, radio stalwarts like Pharrell and Estelle appear on “Chasin’ Papers” and “Here’s The Thing” respectively, but neither collaboration takes away from the overall vibe of the album. Even guys like 2 Chainz and Wiz Khalifa keep in line with the slow flow of the record on “Capitol” and “No Squares”. They’re all guests in Curren$y’s house, where the weed is good and the vibe is chill.
Upon first listen, The Stoned Immaculate won’t hit you. This isn’t the kind of CD that you – in an alternate universe where people still buy music – fly out of Tower Records on a Friday night, tear of the cellophane, and play at it’s loudest volume, speeding out the parking lot. Instead, it’s a slow burn, one that doesn’t hit you until the fourth of fifth time, much like Curren$y’s preferred drug of choice.
Pretty good review, I need to listen to this a few more times, but upon first listen I was feelin’ it. Production is solid. Curren$y took a minute to grow on me when I first heard him, but his impeccable beat selection always makes it easy to give him a chance.
Comments (1)
July 10th, 2012 at 10:30 am
8 July, 2012@1:55 pm
1 comments